Gerald Leslie Brockhurst, R.A.

Purchased from the artist, 1970 by Mr Somerset and Lady Julia de Chair
Sale, Christie's, St Osyth's Priory, Essex, June 1984, whence purchased by H. Woods Wilson
James Birch
Private collection

London, Royal Academy, Summer Exhibition, 1939, no.869;
Sheffield, Graves Art Gallery, Brockhurst: A Dream of Fair Women, 12 December 1986 - 31 May 1987, no.58, illustrated in the catalogue, p.43; with tour to Birmingham City Art Gallery, Birmingham and National Portrait Gallery, London.

The canvas is in good overall condition. There are marks of surface matter in places across the canvas. Otherwise the surface is in good overall condition. Held under glass in a thick rectilinear frame. Please telephone the department on 020 7293 5381 if you have any questions regarding the present work.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

By the second half of the 1930s, Brockhurst had achieved a position as one of the pre-eminent society portraitists and to secure his services for a commission was considered a great coup (he was at that time charging in the region of £1,000 per commission). However, the artist had a number of sitters that he wished to paint, and of these there were three notable women who stand as icons of their age, Merle Oberon, the Duchess of Windsor and Marlene Dietrich. The first two portraits were completed, but the third, the present work, remained unfinished, its progress arrested by the outbreak of WWII and the departure of both artist and sitter to the United States.

Born in Germany in 1901, by 1937 when this portrait was started, Dietrich was one of the most recognisable screen icons of the period, having secured international stardom in the 1930 film, The Blue Angel, and after a move to Hollywood and a string of films for Paramount in the first half of the decade, for Brockhurst to secure her as a sitter was a major coup. He recalled '...the first time Marlene Dietrich came to sit for me she found some old gramophone records...and for three hours I had a concert with Marlene jumping on and off chairs and dancing...then as she had entertained me I had to reciprocate and gave her my imitation of Hitler'. The portrait remained unfinished, and was kept by the artist until 1970, but even in this state, the power of Brockhurst's ability to capture the essence of a sitter without the undoubted technical virtuosity of his work in oils is clear. As an important but now rather forgotten printmaker, the artist's use of black and white to create an incredibly powerful and instantly arresting image of Dietrich, albeit in its early state, now seems rather appropriate for the presentation of an icon of the black and white screen age.